November 08

We were actually here all month, well technically we got back Nov.2nd but I'll let that slide. It was an ok month, I took Alex to a ukelele concert, we went to another birthday party and for the first time in a while Alex actually did more work on the house. It was nice to get back into a rhythm here and see friends, go for hikes or bike rides and just relax. But we also got sick the most this month, there is apparently a lot of good to being on the go constantly. We all got an awful stomach flu that really set us back and then a pretty bad cold with LOTS of coughing so glad that is all done, ugh!!

We were healthy for Thanksgiving and had a great time at our friends Miae + David's. David made the best gravy I have ever had, I'm not just saying that so you have us back next year, it truly was so good!!! All the food was and we figured out the key to all good meals..bacon. It was wrapped around the turkey, in the stuffing, in the vegetables...everywhere and it all was SOOO good.

Sasha saw Cinderella for the first time- I was leary and she only watched maybe a half hour but I thought that would open the flood gates for princesses and we'd be finished. Luckily that hasn't happened and while her favorite color is still pink, her favorite girl is still DORA. During Thanksgiving the girls played with their usual love/hate relationship. It is really funny, they both talk about each other, get very excited to see each other and then when together, yell, hit and at times go full on WWF style for a toy. It used to be Sophia that took what she wanted and Sasha never really fought back. Well now Sasha is quite the battler and does this screaming fit where she actually shakes to fight back. We try to let them work it out as long as no one is really getting hurt. But then we laugh b/c after we seperate them and we leave Sasha is crying for Sophia...two year olds who can figure them out!

There aren't many pictures for this month but check out these few:
http://picasaweb.google.com/amyres/Nov08?authkey=3xdksN5Ex1M#

Oct 08

October had it's mix of travel and home fun! We were here the first few weeks and had friends in town. Which gave us an excuse to go check out Renzo Piano's new California Academy of Science. It was pretty nice and Sasha loved seeing all the fish as well as going into the rain forest and trying to catch the butterflies. The whole place, while expensive, is great to go check out. It was nice seeing Donna and Andy, the ex-Berkeleyites now Burlingtonites, and we were so happy they found time to join us for dinner and catch up.

We also had our block party, which we missed last year, and was amazed that there was entertainment. We had a live band and a neighbor did some fire dancing, I think called Poi. It was really cool and the kids as well as adults were mesmerized. Most of the party for me was spent running back and forth pushing Sasha on her tricycle [she can't reach the pedals yet] to keep up with the older kids on their bikes. I got a good little run in and she had a great time "playing" with the other kids. One little girl was super cool and was on her skateboard which now Sasha likes to balance on one of my legs and pretend she's skateboarding...one day we'll try it.

This month we also went to 2 birthday parties, a pumpkin carving party and even 2 sukkot parties. Sasha has really settled into school and seems to be enjoying it. Now she runs off into the classroom without saying goodbye. Her teachers are incredibly loving and I see her giving them big hugs when she says hello and goodbye. We try to do some fun things as a family there as well- they have an incredible amount of events and the sukkot dinner party was really nice. We were the last ones to leave as Sasha cried while we dragged her out...

At the pumpkin carving party, our friends Andrea and Ray found these great accessories for kids that you push into pumpkins so they feel like they are doing it themselves. Hard to explain and I didn't take a picture...but we put stickers on our pumpkin, Alex helped cut a mouth and Sasha put on the two eyes and nose to help make a good creepy pumpkin that sat out on our porch for almost a month!

One weekend we actually took a day trip down to Half Moon Bay to hit a bunch of pumpkin patches. We found that at age 2 it was a little more difficult to get the nice "sit on the pumpkin and smile for the camera" picture. Sasha was more interested in these rocking horses that the pumpkins could have disappeared. She had a blast riding them and we probably went on all 7 that were at the pumpkin patch. And we got great pictures on those! We had some free alone time in the bouncy house as well, so Mommy joined in on the fun and at one point bounced into Sasha taking her completely out and the fun ended...oops!

So of course we still went back east for my cousin Julie's wedding and to do our whole East Coast visit. We had a great time seeing everyone and the wedding was amazing! Julie looked beautiful, Mark her now husband handsome and everything was over the top! The food was great, the band one of the best I've ever heard and the whole decor elegant. It was a fun night dancing and stuffing ourselves silly. Congrats again!

While there my parents took Sasha to Adventureland - it's got rides and is like a big carnival, we used to love it as kids. She had a blast and is surprisingly more of a daredevil than we thought. She asked if she could go on the roller coaster and due to my parents fear they told her maybe next yr! HA! Ok and maybe the fact she wasn't tall enough...

Alex and I met up with friends that day and I dreamed about what it would be like to move back to NY...surprisingly other than the snow I think it would be nice. Alex says I always say that when we go back during the fall b/c it is so beautiful with all the leaves changing. He suggests we go back during the winter to see what I think, and then I realize I may stay in CA forever.

After the wedding we headed to our friend Mary's in Brooklyn and had two days to explore Manhattan. The first day was beautiful and we just wandered around the village. We met up with Mary for dinner and it was so nice to catch up. The next day was pouring rain- like what you see in the movies- all day! We got soaked going from her apt. to the subway and it's literally a block and a half!! We bought another umbrella and luckily Sasha thought it was hilarious. Considering all this we just headed straight to the Met and spent the entire day in the museum. I hadn't been in a really long time and it was Alex's first time. While it was packed, due to the weather, it really was amazing. We gave into Sasha using her pacifier the whole time we were there and she even napped for an hour and half so we enjoyed seeing all of the art. It really is HUGE!!

The next day we were off to Maryland, on the train and Sasha had a great time. Since she's at the stage where she loves trains we figured we'd just take one from Penn Station to Baltimore. It shockingly wasn't that expensive and only took a little over 2 hrs!!
Once there Alex's sister Julie and her fiance Mike picked us up and we headed out to lunch with Grandma Nellie and Aunt Carol. Sasha had no nap and wasn't the happiest unfortunately but luckily they still love her. The next day we headed over to Alex's other grandparents [the Hills] and had a really nice time. We raked leaves and Sasha had a great time jumping in them while Alex pretended to hide and tackle her. It was hilarious! While it took some time for Sasha to feel comfortable, she ended up on Grandad Hills lap by the end and I think made him incredibly happy. This trip was a bit hard for her, with so many new places and people...so it was nice to see. We also saw a bunch of college friends for dinner and brunch, got to go to a farm with Grandma and take a hay ride and see Sasha's cousins. Overall it was a great trip!

Here are some more pictures of all the fun we had this month!
http://picasaweb.google.com/amyres/Oct08?authkey=4oxr0GsHbD0#

September 08

September was an amazing month and incredibly packed. For Sasha's 2nd birthday we went to Tahoe with my Dad, we had a great time and are always in awe of how beautiful it is. We spent some time at the beach, went on a hike and just relaxed. I think both Alex + I knocked out two books thanks to my Dad being there to play with Sasha. We celebrated her actual birthday with an ice cream cake, chocolate is by far her favorite and luckily she is quite neat.

The next big event was heading to Portland/Hood River for Abby + Will's wedding. I flew up by myself on Thurs. evening and helped Abby do last minute things before driving out with her to Hood River to start the wedding weekend. It was so nice to get some alone time as we all know how crazy those weekends are for the bride. We went to the spa with all the girls for some pampering and had a great time. Robin and Ted flew out for the wedding and we got to meet little Cameron, at that point only 2 months old!! She is such a cutie and they are great with her. It's so nice to see how happy they all are! Then that evening was a BBQ at the group house we were renting and we had fun relaxing and chatting with everyone who flew into town. Sat. we had a breakfast for the bridal party to do a rehearsal and after this is when all of our running around finally calmed down. We headed out to a winery, Cathedral Ridge, and it was a gorgeous day to hang out on the grounds. Most people were in town by now and it was good to enjoy being out in the sunshine. I even bought a bottle to celebrate the weekend!

That afternoon Alex, Sasha and the Wines' came out to Hood River in time for the BBQ that evening. Thanks again to the Wines' for shuttling us around and letting us stay at your house! It was much appreciated and as always good to see you and little Henry! We have a video of Sasha singing "My Bonnie" and she lets us know that Henry likes that song- it's adorable. Anyway, the BBQ that night was in such a great setting, there were playgrounds for the kids and really amazing stone fireplaces to keep us warm as the sun set. Will's crew did all the cooking and everything was delicious. It was a really nice way to get everyone together and kickstart the party.

The next day was the wedding!!! We went on a hike with Kristen and Rick in the morning. After the hike Kristen and I got ready and met up with Abby, Robin and Abby's sister Laura at Laura's house. Abby had gotten her hair done there and she looked beautiful. We then all drove out to the B+B together and had a lot of fun on the car ride. We finished getting dressed at the B+B and the place was amazing!! Mt. Hood was in the backround and it really was impressive. After some toasts + champagne in the suite we were told it was time to go!! We took a few pictures and then headed out to the ketubah signing and ceremony. Abby was radiant and Will beaming- it was so nice to see how much love was surrounding them from all their family and friends! After the ceremony we had a great time and even learned a square dance. The whole weekend was a blast and we're so happy for them! Congrats again and thanks for letting us be such a big part of the weekend!

The next trip, yes we travelled again, was back to MA for Rosh Hashanah. We were going to surprise my grandmother who was coming in from FL but that didn't work out...so while we were sick we went anyway and although it was an incredibly quick trip we got to see Lisa's new house and have a short visit with my parents.

In between all of that we were exhausted! And you wonder why I don't write this blog more consistently! Here's some pics of the months happenings!

http://picasaweb.google.com/amyres/September08?authkey=LUwKupir-10#